Butterick 5520, An 80s Revival in Hot Pink Peplum

I think the first version of Butterick 5520 that I saw was Eugenia's, with the lace overlay on the sleeves. I liked the dress as a classic sheath with embellishment possibility, and when I saw that it had a peplum I was really into it.

I associate the gratuitous peplum like this (a peplum in a jacket is both design and functions to add length) with the 80s, but it is not entirely out of date. Balenciaga put this sleeveless number with asymmetric front slit on the runway for Fall 2008 (although since F2011 just walked the runway, it is still not exactly au courant). Charlize Theron totally worked it on the red carpet without the arm covering thingies. But I don't need the peplum to be in style. It is a great shape for a pear--in exaggerating the hip, it actually disguises it.

I bought the wool at H&M Fabrics in NYC in November. At $10/yard, it was expensive by my standards, but I just adored it. Although PR's stash contest was running the past two months and I generally try to sew up stash, I just *had* to get this piece done. I felt like I needed to get it done while the current 80s moment is on. But when it was done I was surprised at how un-outrageous it is. You put the words "peplum," "houndstooth," and "hot pink satin" in the same sentence and you expect to be a little over the top, but this is almost...tasteful. Which is nice, because it should be able to stay in my wardrobe for many years.

I started with Broad back adjustment and small bust adjustment. When it was completed I thought maybe I shouldn't have done the broad back adjustment because when my arms are at my sides the extra fabric sags a little there and the back is overall a touch baggy. But later I felt vindicated because even with the broad back adjustment I popped the stitches on the lining under the arm when wearing the dress and vigorously messing with something on the floor. So I will have to deal with the slightly saggy back in order to have full range of motion.

For the SBA I narrowed the dart.

I also shortened the bodice an inch. I have a high waist but a long torso so I generally don't mess with the length of the bodice. Here, I wanted the waistline to be slightly high as I didn't want the peplum to hit me too low on the thigh. If I made this again, I would probably shorten the waist only 1/2 inch, but I am happy with where the waist hits me on this project.



I lined the peplum in hot pink rayon satin, purchased from Fabric.com for $2.79/yd last September. While I love the contrast underside, I wanted to ensure that it would not show unless the peplum flipped up. The first step was to trim the side and lower edges of the peplum lining to make it slightly smaller than the fashion fabric. This creates a turn of cloth after they are sewn together.



Anytime I am pressing a lining or facing, I always press from the underside. As I arrange the fabric for pressing, I make sure that I can see the tiniest edge of the outer fabric and then press. If you can see the tiniest edge of the outer fabric from the underside, you won't see any of the underside when the garment is on.



Here you can see that the pink satin lining does not show at all when the peplum is laying flat, and you can also see the tiny edge of the fashion fabric that shows from the underside. This closeup shows a little better how you can see the edge of the fashion fabric rolling over the lining.

I use invisible zippers almost exclusively. I will only use a regular zipper if the fabric is thick and crosses a seam so that an invisible can't be invisible (or if it is invisible, won't slide past the hump). I used to be competent at regular zippers, but I now do them so infrequently--no more than two a year and probably less!--that I have completely lost my touch.

The last time I put in a regular non-invisible zipper (I think it was over a year ago on my houndstooth fail dress) I decided that the next time I had a regular zipper to do I would just hand pick it. So that's what I did here. I basted the center back together as for a machine insertion, pinned the zipper, and sewed it in with a prick stitch (tutorial on Somerset's blog). It didn't take too long, maybe 25 or 30 minutes. I would have spent that much time sweating it over the machine and it would have looked terrible. I can see doing a fancy beaded hand-picked zipper for a special project.

I'm still not entirely happy with the zipper as I feel that the "lips" open up a little over it. I actually did my first lapped zipper to see if it's better when making the skirt of the leftover fabric so stay tuned for that...

Another downside of regular zipper--you have to hand sew the lining to the zip. Again, didn't take very long, but man, an invisible zipper is so much easier in about 12 different ways.

I've gotta say, I just love stepping into this hot pink satin lining. I feel like a character in a movie, maybe Jessica Rabbit.

While the pattern is well drafted and all the parts fit together, for some reason the peplum just does not sit right for me. You can see that it sort of bulges out about halfway down. I had to take a hand tack on the front and back openings to get them to lay right. I don't know what that's about. In cutting, I spent a long time decided whether I wanted the peplums on the bias or the crossgrain for visual interest, but ultimately decided that houndstooth, peplum, and hot pink satin were enough visual interest and cut them per the marked grainline. So I don't think it's a grain issue (though the print is very slightly off grain and I cut with the print rather than the actual grain). I guess they need to be shortened at waistline at CF and CB for me? I don't know.



The final finishing touch for this project was a hand hem with hem lace. Here I did not do a fancy stitch, although I have seen hand blind-stitching and it is exquisite. I just went with my default, the whip stitch.



This was a rather painstaking project, starting with cutting everything out in single layer. Even that was harder than it could be because the houndstooth on this fabric are printed on rather than woven in, and they are very faint on the wrong side of the fabric. So the first piece was easy to cut, but lining it up with the second piece was no fun. However, all the houndstooth match and are straight, although the back hem mysteriously does not run straight on the right side. I counted the houndstooths at the CB and right side seam and there are the same number. I traced the houndstooths across the right skirt and they run straight across from the CB seam to the side seam. I just can't figure it out. I'm pretty sure I am cursed in this arena. However, it is not nearly as horrible or noticeable as the last one.

But a nice wool dress deserves painstaking and I don't begrudge any of the effort involved. I have only worn it once and will try to wear it one more time before cold weather ends. Knowing I have this in my closet will make next year's onset of cold weather bearable (but only the onset, not the duration!).

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

Butterick 5454, Knit Wrap Dress

One of the projects in my purple and green wardrobe for my trip to Turkey last Fall was this Butterick 5454 wrap dress. It is definitely a winner!
The gorgeous border print knit was a gift from Marji and I wanted to find just the right pattern for it.

I altered the pattern with my usual adjustments, broad back and small bust. For the broad back adjustment, last time I did this change I noticed that it added length to the back bodice so that it didn't match up with the front bodice. Which, duh, but as I've mentioned before I do *not* have a 3-dimensional mind. So I shortened the back bodice above the waist, as the lower set of red lines shows.

I did my normal swayback adjusting, similar to this.

I also shortened the front crossover for an SBA. In the Big 4 I find that I need to take out at least two inches of length (only about 1 inch is usually necessary for Burda). The reduced length, along with twin-needling over slightly shorter clear elastic along the neckline, keeps it nice and snug with absolutely no gapage.

I wish I could say the same about gapage for the skirt, LOL. I was a little trepidatious about taking a wrap dress on vacation because the split skirt can make it a little fussy to wear, but I loved it so much when it was finished I couldn't leave it behind. I wore it the day I visited the Acropolis in Athens and asked a friendly German fellow to take my photo. Well, an inopportune gust of wind came along just as he snapped the shutter. Whoops! I convinced him to take another shot.

As an aside, clicking on the photo will not enlarge and it is not otherwise available on the internet anywhere--I put it in my flickr and it was instantly set upon by the flickr nasties. I hope that you pay attention to who has favorited your flickr photos--if it is someone unsavory, click on their name and it will give you an option to block them on their profile page. Blocking someone means they cannot favorite your photos to easily find them later and cannot add them to galleries. I choose to make my photos publicly available and understand that I am allowing the unsavories to see my photos and can accept that. However, I do not want them to be able to aggregate them and flickr provides the tool to prevent that in the block feature.



The only thing I don't like about this pattern is the shoulder pleat. It kind of opens up into nowhere and looks weird. Because I thought it would just be too much with the large motif of the fabric, I did not cut the bodice on the bias as directed, so it could be related to grain. It also could be that I should have sewn it down further, my small bust, or just bad design. When I make this pattern again, I will convert that inverted pleat in the front shoulder to a gather.





Marji sent me a little over 3 yards of this fabric and I was determined to make the most of it. It was a HUGE pain to cut, because not only was the fabric a double border print but the non-border motifs changed direction at not-quite-the-center-fold of the fabric. It took me hours to lay out and painstakingly make sure all the prints would match. Hours! I had to skimp on the tie (would have liked it longer and ending in the border), but the print matches at every seam on every piece.

I had only tiny scraps left at the end, as you can see at right.

In the end it was worth it, as I managed to get another Butterick 5382 pleat neck dress out of it. Though it is sleeveless, I've actually had a fair amount of wear out of it this winter with a sweater over it. It's my go-to casual party/festive dress. I cut the facing out a print part of the fabric and it doesn't look great at the neckline as the print facing peeks out over the brown neckline, but whatevs.

I also got a skirt out of it, but unfortunately it's not wearable. The fabric's stretch was along the crossgrain with very little on grain--but the border was printed along the selvages. So there is pretty much zero stretch when you use the border along the hem. I didn't think to put a zipper in the skirt to compensate for this, and I'm afraid it's going to pop a seam in putting it on and off. It is serger constructed, so I don't have enough seam allowance to put a zipper into it.



I think I have found my wrap dress pattern for the ages. The Vogue 8379 DVF knockoff that is so great for so many people just doesn't do it for me. The pleats in the bodice make a little too much room for my bust and are angled wrong for me, and the bias of the circle skirt--in addition to taking up huge amounts of fabric--drapes a little too well over my saddle bags and emphasizes them. The virtually unshaped bodice of B5454 and the straight cut skirt (with additional width added in the form of inverted pleats) are much more flattering to my small-busted pear-shaped figure.

Based on the identical line drawings and pleat details, I'm pretty sure B5546 in the lower-priced See & Sew line is the exact same body with a slightly different flutter sleeve and minus the wide sleeve, for my non-US readers who don't get the cheap pattern sales we are lucky to have here.

The pattern review is here and all photos are here.

Butterick 5382, Pleat Neck Empire Waist Dress

Based on what I see on the street, the pleated neckline trend is still going strong so I decided to make my fabulous hot pink and black G Street Fabrics $2.97/yd knit print for possible inclusion in my Turkey wardrobe out of Butterick 5382.

I had previously purchased nearly identical Vogue 8593. However, the Vogue does not have a waist seam and I have pretty much given up on dress patterns that don't have a waist seam. For a serious pear like me, it is the rare pattern in which I can cut a 6 or 8 shoulder/bust and a 12 or 14 hip in one length of fabric and have everything work out in the way it hangs and fits. I really need a waist seam that will allow me to dart extra fabric into the lower half. A waist seam also allows for much better swayback correction. So I was overjoyed to see the Butterick pattern come out with the waist seam and skirt darts. V8593 can be made into a great tee as demonstrated by KBenco, so the pattern won't go to waste.

This dress was so successful and so easy once you put in the pleats (only four pieces, plus sleeves and a way to finish the neck) that I decided to go ahead and make it again with short sleeves.

As with Burda 11-2008-111, I found that where the shaping for the bodice and bust is in neck pleats, the small bust adjustment is done by shortening the lower edge of the bodice piece at center front, tapering to nothing at the side seams. Here, the shape of the bodice pattern is actually concave at the center front and it would be more trouble than it's worth to adjust the pattern piece. Once the pleats are made in the fabric, it's easy to cut off that lower curve.

The most challenging part of this pattern is finishing the neck, simply because there is a huge amount of bulk with pleats upon pleats. For the pink version, I actually used the facing (*gasp*). The black/pink fabric is a thick, spongy, cottony (yet polyester) knit and there was no way a binding would work. I lengthened the back facing to give it more weight and help it stay in place better. Once sewn in, I hand tacked it at the shoulders, the front pleats (hidden by the other pleats upon pleats) and the center back. The plus side of this thick fabric is that although there is no seam at CB, my hand stitches taking up a few threads of fabric don't show.

The black and white fabric was purchased from Fabric.com with all the Vera Wang pieces back in January for $1.95/yd. However, based on the product code, it is not actually from the VW Lavendar Collection (it doesn't match the style/colorway, either). It's one of those really stretchy wovens that are so stretchy they're almost a knit. Not lightweight, but not as thick as the black and pink fabric.

I decided to finish the sleeve and hem with a serger rolled hem in black, so to continue the black finish motif I used a black knit binding at the neckline, intending to act somewhat as piping. I cut it about two inches wide (should have done 3, given how much bulk it has to fold over), folded in half, sewed it to the right side of the neck with the cut edges aligned with the neck edge, rolled it to the inside leaving just a hint of it showing at the neckline, and topstitched in place. I probably should hand stitch the seam allowances onto the pleats at CF, but so far they have stayed in place.

I had been planning to get myself a Brother 1034D serger for my birthday because the tension on my secondhand White is not great. However, it had been behaving so well and I have been spending so much on travel lately that I decided to defer it. But for this project I couldn't get a good rolled hem on this fabric so now I'm considering whether I should just go ahead and get it. For the hem edge, I folded the fabric along the hemline and then serged juuuuuust next to the fold. I miraculously did not cut into the fold anywhere! This gave it more body for the serger to grab onto, but the tension wasn't enough to actually roll the hem to the inside.

This knit dress pattern is drafted with a zipper at center back. I thought that this was one place where a knit dress might actually need a zipper because the neckline appeared narrow, but several of the pattern reviews said it could be left off. Sweet!

For the pink version, I cut the bodice back on the fold but the skirt with a CB seam for swayback purposes. I had to tweak the length of the back dart, ultimately adding about 1.5 inches. I also had to shorten the front dart about an inch to give myself more belly room. I didn't fit the swayback closely because I wanted to keep that room in the belly.

However, for the black and white version, I decided to do an exposed zip using a metal zip I believe I bought at Jomar a couple years ago. This trend has been around for so long that I'm sure I just gave it the kiss of dress by finally making a dress with one but that's ok. Because of the zipper feature, I wanted a close fit at the swayback because a baggy exposed zip was not the sexy look I was going for here. However, you can see the price I pay for swayback definition: belly definition. Before you protest: (1) I know I'm slim (and I work hard for it), it's a proportion thing. (2) Especially looking at this picture, I can see that with the architecture of my body there's just no room for organs if I had a flat belly. This was taken first thing in the morning when my belly is at its flattest *and* I was sucking in. It normally sticks out about 2 inches more than in the photo. For real. I generally look about 5 months pregnant. I think I will only be wearing this dress when it's cool enough for tights. Tummy-sucking-in tights. Not to mention that this fabric is the plasticky kind of polyester; definitely can't be worn when it's hot anyway (warm, maybe, but not hot).

I install an exposed zip just like a regular, non-invisible zip: baste the center back seam, right sides together; press seam. Place zipper over the seam, in this case on the outside of the fabric. Stitch. Unpick basting. At the lower edge of the zipper I turned in the little extra flaps of zipper tape and at the top I caught them in the neck binding.


My only quibble with this pattern is that the sleevecap of the long sleeve is too high and pointy. I thought that would be the case when cutting it, so I basted it in and it created a little peak at the shoulder. I rounded out the curve and it installed much more smoothly. The sleeves are a little slim cut as well, but of course I serged off my seam allowances (did both dresses almost entirely with serger construction) so oh well.


LOVE this pattern, tummy psychosis notwithstanding. Of course, my taste in crazy prints means that the neckline pleating detail is pretty much lost, but I know it's there.

I am calling the black and pink version my "architectural dress" because both the pleating detail and the print are architectural. I spent a lot of time laying out my fabric to get the best looking print layout, resulting in an uncharacteristic amount of wasted fabric, and I succeeded beyond my expectations. I love the way the bodice front and skirt match up and I *think* the print matchup there is low enough and close enough together that it does not look like peek-a-boobs, just like a cool design feature. I like the pattern placement on the sleeves, and the long lines on the skirt lengthen my short legs.

I'm not quite as crazy about the black and white version. However, I hope the boyfriend will like the exposed zip (though he doesn't notice clothes 98% of the time--my fashion is wasted on him unless it's short and tight, but this is sort of both so fingers crossed) and it looks good under a black jacket for a work thing that doesn't require a full suit, like a speaking engagement.

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

Butterick 5283, Asymmetric Twist Top

T-shirts are serviceable but boring. I mentioned before that when I didn't have time sew my uniform for, like, 10 years was a solid colored tee (H&M, mostly) and a bright printed skirt (half quickie hand-made, half RTW). I still enjoy seeing this look on other people, but I feel so bored I'm going to throw up when I put it on myself. However, I do have a few printed skirts that I love to wear (like the one on the left of my silk jersey score), so I'm always looking for a way wear a tee but still be interesting. I liked this variation on the twist top, Butterick 5283. I made this over the winter out of the leftovers from my Duchess of Windsor dress from a couple of years ago and brought the pattern out again for the turquoise rayon jersey from G Street.

The method devised by Butterick to finish the front is creative, but a little strange. You're supposed to cut two fronts, then sew them right sides together at the neckline and the little area that will be exposed at the twist. Then turn right side out. This seemed both needlessly wasteful of fabric and like it would turn out a shirt with weird texture issues if you didn't also double the back. My construction method:



1. Fold the allowance of the front neckline over clear elastic and twin needle to finish.

2. Clip into the seam allowances at the twist marking, turn under, and stitch the allowance in place to finish.

3. Stitch the diagonal seam from side to finished twist edges. Twist. (The instructions have you twist and then stitch, I found it easier to stitch then twist, but it's just personal preference.)

4. Stitch front to back at shoulders, ensuring that back neckline allowance overhangs at the inner shoulder seam. This has a long drop shoulder so I stabilized with ribbon.

5. Press shoulder seam allowance toward back, including allowance on the overhanging portion of the back neckline.

6. Fold back neckline allowance over clear elastic and twin needle in place taking care to match up with twin needle stitching at front neckline.

For the turquoise version, I got in my head to do a bubble sleeve (gotta make it interesting, right?). I traced off a stay (the sleeve as drafted) and a longer bit of the sleeve for the bubble (marked lines here--although it turns out the bubble should only be 1.5 inches longer than the stay, see below). Then I slashed and spread the bubble part of the sleeve as shown at left.

To make the sleeve, I gathered the lower edge of the bubble and the sewed it right sides together with the lower edge of the stay. I folded the bubble up over the stay to enclose the seam and then treated the sleeve as one unit in sewing to the armscye.

I had been a little worried after assembling my sleeve, as the bubble did not really seem to be in evidence so I basted it in place to see how it looked. Didn't look like much! Although I added a generous amount of width to my bubble pattern, the volume wasn't showing with the sleeve stay being so much shorter and pulling most of that volume to the inside. So I took it off, shortened the bubble to about an inch longer than the stay and put it back in place. Much better!

For the blue version, I put darts in the back (should have added a CB seam and done a swayback adjustment). For the turquoise version, I also added a little width to the side seams below the bust to match the current styles. Shapeless is in, it seems.

In doing some virtual snoop shopping for Spring/Summer inspiration, I ran across not one but two versions of the asymmetric twist top. I'm not sure that the Kors piece is actually a twist, it looks like it could just be a gather, but the Boss Black is almost the same design (except in a woven). Fancy!

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

Butterick 5450, Easter Dress

I think my marinating time for fabrics is about a year, because this is another one from from Hong Kong, right on the heels of my McCall 5579 kimono from another Hong Kong fabric (they were sewn about a month apart).

I had originally intended this fabric to be for the Simplicity 2827 vintage dress pattern I made in May, but I kind of fell out of love with the fabric. I felt like the colors were a little too pale. I like saturation. So I skipped it for that project, but thought it would work with Butterick 5450. It looks a bit like an Easter dress with those colors, but it is cuter made up than I was feeling it on the shelf.

I started with my usual adjustments, now including broad back. This has separate pattern pieces for the bodice and bodice lining, which is a nice touch for a simple pattern. But that meant I needed to adjust both the back and back lining. In the course of this project, I realized that the L shaped adjustment ends up adding length to the back side seam. I was really confused at first when my side seams were about an inch offset. That's a lot even for my imprecise self. However, the back fits well and doesn't pull across the shoulderblades. I also did a swayback adjustment. However, because of the bodice design, with its very deep center pleat and smaller side pleats, I wasn't sure if it would need a small bust adjustment or how to do one, so I left that to the fates. Luckily, the bust fits well and is not too large or baggy.

When I made this there were only a few reviews of this pattern on Pattern Review, and the photos were all on flat-bellied dress forms and one flat-bellied person. I really, really did not want to deal with this clinging to the belly and decided to add a little width to the front skirt, which is meant to be cut on the fold. I must have been tired when cutting this out because I remember thinking, "Do I need to add any width at the very top? No, I don't think so." That would have been ok were it not for that pesky "seam allowance" requirement. Duh. I sewed CF with a very narrow 1/4 inch SA. I also added width to the sides at the upper edges and turned the front dart into a pleat. The front has plenty of belly room. In fact, I probably would have been fine with the skirt as drafted on the fold.

To get the skirts out of my fabric I had to cut them on the cross grain, which results in that awful pattern repeat on the front. That really bothered me when it was first made, but luckily I can't see the front skirt while I'm wearing it.

I don't know if it was a result of creating a slight A line in the front skirt or what, but the back skirt was making a terrible shark fin when it was all put together. It looked ridiculous! I had installed the zipper pretty far down and could only take in the center back for about the last 10 inches, but it remedied the problem.

Ever since I saw this fabulous jacket by Couture Arts in person in Philly at PR Weekend I have been wanting to do some decorative hand-stitching with embroidery floss. I chose a yellow very slightly more saturated than the yellow in the print to try to bring some brighter color into it. I hand-stitched around the neckline and down both edges of the center front deep pleat. In the end, the stitching barely shows even up close, alas (click on the photo to enlarge--you can also see the pin my mom gave me that goes perfectly). But I like the technique and will keep it in mind for embellishing other projects. Embellishment is always hard for me because I don't have an eye for it (even though I love to make jewelry--I don't know why the disconnect) and fear it will always end up Becky Home-Ecky.

When the dress was done, the pale colors were definitely missing something. I figured I would probably want to wear it with a belt anyway, so I dove into stash to see what I could find. I came up with this vintage ribbon I purchased from the Goodwill trunk show I went to last year. It pained me to cut into a bit of vintage ribbon, but saving it forever is not why it was made and it was the perfect finishing touch for this dress.

It is a cute, well-drafted pattern, other than the Bad Old Way directions for lining the bodice (see my tutorial of earlier this week for the new, better way). I really like that there are separate bodice lining pieces. It puzzles me that the skirt is not supposed to be lined; I lined it. LOVE the back neck darts, something that was standard on older patterns yet all but disappeared today. Most of us have somewhat rounded shoulders and the dart makes for a nice fit.

The only thing I don't like about the pattern is that the straps are quite narrow. I should have paid attention to the drawing and the width of the straps in cutting, because the drawing fairly accurately depicts their width. I am comfortable wearing sleeveless pieces to work, but generally prefer a little more shoulder coverage, so if I made this again I'd widen those straps out toward the shoulder.

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

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PRODUCT/SERVICE RECOMMENDATION. Not affiliated or compensated in any way.

I wore my old pair of Gingher scissors--a gift from my mom with my first sewing machine in 1996--into the ground, and bought new ones when they got painfully dull (literally--they hurt my hand). I kept the old ones on the ironing board for cutting interfacing and quick jobs. I took them to the hardware store to get sharpened, where they managed to dull with finality the last little bit of cutting edge. I don't think they could even have cut paper; they certainly couldn't cut crisp cotton batiste, possibly the most easygoing fabric to cut. I took them to the G Street Fabrics Scissor Sharpening Event team (I hope the response convinced them to repeat it on a regular basis), who probably could have restored the cutting edge if they weren't trying to sharpen 200 other pairs of scissors in a four hour time span. They brought them back to almost being able to cut interfacing.

I visited the Gingher website and they promised that for $7.50 they would restore my scissors to like-new working condition and send them back to me (no extra shipping charge). I figured I had nothing to lose, as otherwise I would have to try to find a way to recycle the metal of the scissors so I sent them along with a check. A check--so quaint!!! But they don't take credit cards. The website says 3-4 weeks; I think mine was right at three.

I got them back yesterday, complete with the sheath. I had meant to tape my name and address to the sheath but forgot; I was glad they kept track of it. They really are like new!!!!! I wish they had loosened the screw a teeny bit as they've always been a squidge stiff, but the blades can chop through multiple layers of fabric like butter again. This from literally not being able to cut *at all*. They have been raised from the dead. I highly recommend this service for your Ginghers!

Butterick 5079, A Twist on the Twist with Twists

Here is a random project from my backlog, Butterick 5079. Because what better time to review a summer dress than when I've had to pull out the wool knickers? Perhaps it will do our Australian/New Zealander friends some good!

I liked the design of this dress in concept, but I have to say, it's kind of a lackluster result.

Rather than the twist being at the neckline, the bodice is cut with an overlay and the twist is several inches below the neck using the overlay. It's an interesting and creative design (that looks fab on this 3.1 Phillip Lim top)...but in real life it just makes you look like you have saggy boobs. Or the saggy boob issue could be related to my flat chest--if your bust is large enough to be differentiated from the twist it might be flattering and interesting. But on me, where the bust and the twist can't really be distinguished, it looks like saggy boobs.

The pattern envelope photo (though not the line drawing) makes it appear as though there is some gathering on the skirt at center front, or at least plenty of fabric. And there is waistline ruching, which always works for me. But again, once made up, these things don't quite add up. Although the skirt is pleasantly full, it is cut as an A line rather than with any gathering at center front and there is no extra fabric there for tummy camouflage. And although there is ruching, it is fairly high up at an empire line, and also provides no tummy camouflage. So I feel like the ruching merely provides a frame for my belly, rather than disguising it.

My fabric was somewhat sheer and needed to be lined. I did not follow the pattern instructions, which were needlessly complicated and involved (1) woven lining and (2) a zipper, both of which are nonsensical in a knit. I cut the bodice out of a knit lining, and then trimmed away 1/4 inch from the neckline and armscyes of the lining to ensure a good turn of cloth that would not show the lining from the outside. I stitched the shoulder seams of the lining and fashion fabrics. Then I sewed them together at the neckline and armscyes, turning right side out through the strap tunnels. The photo at right shows one half turned right side out, and the other right sides together to show the stitching at neckline and armscye. Then sew the side seams.

I really liked this print and was a little disappointed in the result, although at least I only paid $2.97/yd for the fabric. The dress is wearable, but I don't feel great in it so I only wore it a few times over summer and I don't know how many times it will get worn next summer before it gets the boot.

In general I have found the Maggy London/Suzi Chin line of patterns for Butterick to be excellent, so I think this is just a blip and I will certainly continue buying the line.

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

Butterick 5130, Muse Grecian Dress

My backlog of summer dress reviews don't make *quite* as much sense now that it is in the 40s (Farenheit) outside--I really hope this is a blip and we return to our regularly scheduled October weather soon--but I guess they might help for dreaming for next year and, of course, our friends Down Under.



This Butterick 5130 style was all over RTW and I was pleased to see it in the Butterick catalog. A few people on Pattern Review made it and I was totally sold.

I had a vision of actually making this (*gasp*) in a solid, specifically, an avocado colored solid. I was on the hunt for such a fabric the last time I went to NYC, but couldn't find any such color at Spandex House (they tend more toward primary colors) but then I found this print on the street-level floor and fell in love. It was $8/yd, which is steep for me, but I had to have it and knew it was specifically for this dress.

The bodice is designed in several parts and the seam allowances are used for the elastic casings, which is a nice, easy way of doing things. I would quibble a bit with the design/construction order, as you insert the lower elastic into the bodice back and construct the dress before creating the back neckline/raglan sleeve casing, and I found it difficult to keep my fabric flat and create an even casing with all that elastic ruching already in place. However, after completing it I tried to figure a way around doing this (the lower elastic ends are caught in the armscye seam) and couldn't come up with one so maybe it's unavoidable.

They do that annoying thing where instead of publishing a chart in the instructions to tell you what length to cut the elastic they have tissue pieces that you are supposed to use as guides. I really do not understand this. I totally understand including pattern pieces even for things that are simple squares like belt loops--unlike BWOF, which gives you the dimensions and has you draft it yourself--because they are aiming at both beginning and experienced sewists. But the elastic guides do not fall in this category. So I have attempted to create my own. I couldn't find a WYSIWYG application in Blogger for tables, so excuse me if I have bad code. (I cannot for the life of me figure out how to get rid of the huge space--I don't see it in the code.)

	Size 8	Size 10	Size 12	Size 14
Piece 9 (bodice upper and middle front)	13 3/4	14 1/4	14 1/2	15
Piece 10 (boduce back)	14 3/4	15 1/4	15 1/2	16
Piece 11 (waist)	28	29	30 1/2	32
Piece 14 (back and sleeve neckline)	22	22 1/2	23	23.5

I cut the elastic for size 8.

For the bodice upper front, I shortened the elastic 2 1/2 inches

For the bodice sleeve/upper back, I shortened 4 inches.

I expected the waist elastic be too big, but it fit surprisingly well. Perhaps having something to do with the fact that it was up on top of my boobs instead of under them.


So I added another row of elastic *under* the bust, using the selvage as my casing and my duct tape double to get it approximately parallel to the floor. I don't know how well I succeeded, but with all the elastication and gathering a little crookedness isn't noticeable.





I wondered if my boobs had suddenly dropped and I was now low-busted (quite a feat with an AA cup), but just about everyone on Pattern Review had the same problem and added another level of casing as well. I was a little surprised by this problem, as the pattern was otherwise well thought out, well-drafted, and well-designed, and my problem with the Big Three is the drafting for huge, low boobs that requires me to do massive SBAs. Odd.

The instructions for the sleeve are for a regular casing at the hem, but I decided to echo the topmost front bodice casing, which is stitched about 3/8" and 5/8" down from the top to create a little bit of a ruffle above the casing. I took about a 1 inch hem in the sleeve, and stitched two lines for the casing at 3/8" and 5/8" and I like the way it picks up that bodice ruffle.

This summer one of my comfort-zone departures was to make shorter dresses, so I shortened this one 1.5" in cutting. Because of my height, if I cut things as drafted they are massively long so 1.5" seemed very conservative. But perhaps having to do with my additional casing I felt that it ended up *too* short. I wore it unhemmed once, but was just unhappy with the length. So I thought about it and decided to add a band at the hem and topstitch with a twin needle to make it look like a design feature. It doesn't really show much in person or in pictures because of the busy print, but you can sort of see it here. When I wore this in Hong Kong (site of the thumbnail harbor photo and the walk at the peak on the right) AllisonC noticed the hem band, but thought it was an intentional design feature so I'm satisfied.

This was a great dress for summer. I took it with me to Asia and to Spain where it worked with footless tights for cool days. The shoulders are very wide set so I had to wear clear bra straps and make sure they were tucked away inside the sleeves, but other than that it is not fussy or uncomfortable to wear as the elastic need only be fitted, not tight. I hope it's still in style next summer!

All photos are here and the pattern review is here.

Butterick 5321 Pleat Front Shift and Malaysia Stashoholism Confessional

For me it wouldn't be travel unless I stayed up super-late the night before finishing a project. My most recent trip to Asia was no exception, although I actually finished this little number in plenty of time the weekend before leaving (it was a bathing suit giving me a sleepless night). I love a shift dress with a jacket for professional speaking engagements--much more flattering, less stuffy, and more approachable than a suit.



As I observed previously, Vogue 1025, an Anne Klein designer pattern, is almost identical to this one. It seems odd because Butterick and Vogue are the same company so it's competing with itself, but perhaps they are run separately and the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing. Or perhaps the Butterick was already drafted and in the catalog when Anne Klein handed in her pattern, and they couldn't exactly tell a top American designer her pattern was too unoriginal to accept. Or something. Anyway, I hesitated between the two, but ended up choosing Butterick 5321 because of the unusual diagonal darts in the back and the set-in rather than cut-on sleeves.

This was intended to be a muslin for the silk linen I bought a while back from Fabric Mart. I don't have a good solid black dress for either professional events or, not to be morbid, a funeral should one come up. When my dad had a health scare several months ago it occurred to me that I really ought to be prepared, because in a sad situation the last thing I want to think about is whether I have anything appropriate to wear and then have to go shopping or something. What a nightmare. Since the silk linen was expensive by my standards ($8.99/yd), I decided to practice on this $2.97/yard G Street polyester suiting first as a wearable muslin--a highly wearable one as it turns out!

My first pattern adjustment was, of course, a small bust adjustment. On the bodice front I reduced the pleat width and shortened the neck to shoulder edge by taking a tuck a couple inches below the shoulder. When I made it up it turned out I should have taken out just a little more of that distance; the photo here shows the new amount of tuck.

While sewing the dress, I found that the reduced pleat width was good, but the pleat needed to be closed up *much* higher than indicated. I sewed it up to just underneath the bust, so it is more of a released dart than a pleat, I suppose. It's much more flattering there--shapely, not baggy.

I knew I would need a swayback adjustment as well, though I was a little concerned how it would affect the diagonal dart in the back. But, that's the point of a muslin, right? I just took a regular swayback tuck. Luckily, this didn't seem to create any problem with the pleat. I also shortened the skirt a touch.

I do like the diagonal darts. They're so unusual and they add a little interest to what is otherwise a plain back to this dress (though I do like that V back much more than a rounded back neckline). My only gripe is that the fabric ends up so thick there you either have to insert a regular zip (ugh) or fudge your invisible a bit by sewing further toward the edge of the tape (away from the teeth) and compensating by pressing the fabric over the zip. This imperfect solution frustrates me because I take pride in my invisible zip application. In retrospect, I think perhaps if I had trimmed the fabric from the darts I might have improved the situation, but again--that's the point of a muslin.


This is a nice, simple pattern with four pattern pieces (front and back bodice and skirt), each of which is also cut out of lining. I hate facings and would have lined it anyway, so I'm glad Butterick was in my corner on this one. To ensure that the lining would not roll outward and show, I trimmed 1/4" off the neckline and armscye edges of the lining. This makes the lining slightly smaller than the fashion fabric, so it turns under and creates a nice finish.

It seems the Big Four have *finally* caught onto the all-machine method for sewing a lining to a sleeveless garment so the directions don't have you do any nonsense involving hand sewing the lining shoulder seams after everything is put together. Instead, you sew the shoulder seams of the fashion and lining fabrics (leaving the sides seams and back seam open), sew together at neckline and armscye, turn right side out through the strap tunnels, and then sew the side seams of the lining and fashion fabric at one go. I can't believe I did it the other way for so many years.

Since I love a surprise lining *and* I love shopping my stash for linings I pulled out this rayon challis from The Carol Collection. The rayon adds a layer of breathability to the polyester fashion fabric, but is still lightweight and drapey so it doesn't interfere with the lines.


I added pockets, based on the pattern for them from 07-2008-107. This has become my go-to pocket--the shape is good, the opening is large enough to fit your hand easily, but it's not ridiculously large. I don't expect to put anything more bulky into the pockets than business cards (or kleenex in a funeral dress), but there is something nifty about having them. Based on Butterick's method from the Maggy London pleated collar wrap dress Butterick 5320, I sewed the pockets on with a 3/8" seam. This magically causes them to turn under when the rest of the side seam is sewn with a 5/8" seam. It's a nifty little trick. I cut the front pocket out of the lining fabric, because I think the contrast is cute.

I love this dress. It's adorable but professional but comfortable.

HOWEVER, I am not totally sold on the style. The tummy-disguising front skirt pleats are what drew me to it. And they are tummy-disguising. However, they do their job a little too well and the skirt front is puffy and unattractive with a hint of Pregnant Chic when viewed from the side. But then again, seeing the pictures I'm wondering if everything else about it is cute enough to ignore that problem. How many people are going to view me only from the side? And do I care about their opinions?

But my goal for the silk linen is a classic dress I can keep at the back of the closet for many years (or at least as many years as it still fits!), and--while it has shown great staying power--I'm not sure that Pregnant Chic is here to stay. So I'm not yet committed to this pattern as my Reliable Black Dress (a different category than the Little Black Dress, to be sure), but it is still a contender.

All photos are here and the pattern review is here. Please excuse the indulgence of way too many photos of this one. The colleague I was traveling with also sews, so she understands the need for fashion shots, and we did photos all over the area. When you have a willing photographer *and* an exotic location it's hard to know when enough is enough!

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This review is an attempt to make up for the lack of any interesting travel information or stories about Malaysia. I was on the resort island of Langkawi, which is a lovely spot but resorts are not highly cultural. I was working all day anyway.

One evening we had a tour of the island, but unfortunately it was more in the nature of shopping tourism. I was excited that one of the stops was to be a market of local handicrafts, but this was then substituted with a trip to the mall. Yep, a mall. In the department store, I was happy to find these fabrics. They came in pre-packaged lengths of 2 and 3 meters. On some of the fabrics the edges were finished and perhaps the fabric could be used as a tablecloth, but some of them had raw edges, which makes me think they really were sold as fabric.

They were marked as "batik" from Indonesia, but based on my knowledge of batik these are actually prints in batik motifs. It was better than nothing!

I was really drawn to the blue and orange flowers on the dark green fabric. I actually hate the muddy, dark background color and knew at the time I was taking a risk. Either someday a project will leap out for this fabric or I will someday purge it from the stash. It would make a good tier for a tiered skirt, but the hippie/boho thing is not really my style, so I don't plan to make any tiered skirts. However, as the fabric was around $2/meter, I was ok with buying a "maybe someday" piece.

The blue is a little bit like a cuter, girlier bandanna print and I love it! It will be a perfect summer dress.

The light green has so much going on with different prints and motifs, and the colors are sensational. I have a vision for it and I can't believe I don't have a pattern!!! I want a dress with kimono sleeves, a crossover V neck in front, a low V back, a relaxed fit at the waist but with some shaping maybe with an elastic casing or a drawstring, and fullish, short skirt. This style is very popular and I assumed I would definitely have the exact thing in my stash.

I went through all my back issues of BWOF and my envelope patterns and nothing! I have several in that style, but they all have a separate midriff. I feel like, given the elements of the fabric, a midriff would need to have some kind of special print on it. My plan is to cut the bodice with the border along the neck edge, and to use the sawtooth pattern in the center of the skirt (another problem because to use that motif on the front and back skirts the waistline will have to be closer to natural than empire because the fabric is quite narrow). That doesn't leave anything special for a midriff.

BWOF has a couple of options with kimono sleeves, a slightly below empire drawstring/elastic, and relaxed skirt but none of them have crossover tops, they are all very low Vs that require a tank top underneath, and they require fabric flowier than cotton. All the options have high round back necks.

I could draft something but really, who has time? Of patterns I don't own, Simplicity 2642 is OK, but again has the high round back, and the fit is a little *too* relaxed. Butterick and McCall have nothing.

Well, enough rambling. My Tokyo report is still coming!